While still very readable, this book was disappointing compared to the other two Dessen books I read. The friendships felt far more shallow and contriWhile still very readable, this book was disappointing compared to the other two Dessen books I read. The friendships felt far more shallow and contrived than in the other books, and I didn't feel the same connections. The 'abuse' aspect was fairly badly done. Most irritating of all were the easter eggs the author put in with the mentions of characters from previous novels. Because they were so forced in order to make it obvious that the unnamed character was 'so and so from book so and so', they had far too much detail and stuck out like sore thumbs - and they weren't particularly clever. A gushing description of a few people at a mall that is more detailed than the descriptions of major characters is just annoying.

I enjoyed the book enough to be glad I read it, but I hope that this trend doesn't continue....more

Generally, boarding school is a huge kink for me - but somehow I never connected with any of the characters. I empathized with them to some extent, buGenerally, boarding school is a huge kink for me - but somehow I never connected with any of the characters. I empathized with them to some extent, but I didn't really care about them that much. Alaska, in particular, I found more annoying than not, and I thought that the big issues were telegraphed extremely obviously in the book, which made the surprise of the rest of the characters a little hard to take. ...more

Ok, this is 3 books in one and the stars are averaged out. It's YA Vampire/Werewolf/Witch novels, so you know, good stuff. I couldn't stand Poppy in tOk, this is 3 books in one and the stars are averaged out. It's YA Vampire/Werewolf/Witch novels, so you know, good stuff. I couldn't stand Poppy in the first one, she annoyed me from the very first mention of her. Her twin Phil is the only reason I kept reading, because she is ANNOYING.

The other books were better - MaryLynn was awesome, and while I thought the ending was a little rushed, I appreciated the characters a lot more.

The third book was the most balanced in terms of story, and characters I could empathize with on 90% of the level. And so I'm looking forward to how it will be dealt with in the other books which, sadly, are not available on Kindle yet so who knows when I'll read 'em!...more

One of the more satisfying YA books I've read lately, if only because it's pure fantasy - rich teen pop star goes in search of family and finds normalOne of the more satisfying YA books I've read lately, if only because it's pure fantasy - rich teen pop star goes in search of family and finds normalcy. Even if it was too rushed and I'm disappointed in how the family situation wound up....more